Unhindered Kisses
by Shima And Tempis
Summary: Completed drabbles from the 30 Kisses LJ community for Subaru Yagi and Akane Narita. Their romance was unusual, but their love was strong.
1. Watching

Title: **Watching**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #15 - perfect blue

Disclaimer: I don't own _Hot Gimmick_, that belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara! As for "Perfect Blue," that isn't mine either. Eep.

He still blushes whenever they brush arms while reaching for the popcorn. He can't help it, really. She was always beautiful while he...wasn't. And almost every night now she would come to his apartment, sit next to him, and let him play any dorky anime he wished on the DVD player.

Sometimes she talked through every single episode, and sometimes she didn't talk at all. She rarely actually watched, though, except on the rare occasion that Subaru picked an anime with romance in it.

What Akane obviously hadn't noticed was, the more frequently she came over, the more anime Subaru chose with just a touch of romance. He really wanted her to watch, but not because he wanted her to become an anime nut.

See, if Akane was watching the television, she wasn't watching _him_, which was what made him so uncomfortable. Whenever Akane became bored, she would start watching Subaru for his reactions to what she should be paying attention to.

And her eyes were so... invasive.

So when she told him-not asked, she would never ask-that she was coming over that night, Subaru was prepared to pick out an almost purely romantic anime just to keep her eyes off him. Instead, something in him pulled out a movie that wasn't even his own. Actually, it was his sisters, a horror and drama anime. Asahi would never admit to owning any anime at all, which is why it lay within Subaru's massive collection.

_Perfect Blue_... Subaru had never watched it. The fact that it was about a female performer kind of turned him away from it. Besides, what kind of name was "Perfect Blue?"

Just maybe, though, it had enough horror to have Akane clinging to him...but not watching for his own reactions.

Akane came promptly at six-thirty, apparently stuffed from dinner and once again annoyed with the slightly older Narita, Hatsumi.

"She's just so _dumb_," Akane commented, taking her coveted spot on the floor just in front of the couch. Subaru had already put down a pillow for each of them. Subaru touched her shoulder gently, trying to be sympathetic, before excusing himself to get the popcorn. When he came back, Akane was beginning her quick glances from him to the television while he settled on the floor next to her.

Akane never actually screamed during the movie-but her hand clasped Subaru's during almost all of it. At one point she even whimpered, to which Subaru tried to be bold: he kissed her gently on the head and squeezed her hand.

And through the entire movie, not once did Akane look over at him.

When Akane left for the night, Subaru fell onto his bed with a sigh. _Thank god for "_Perfect Blue_."_


	2. His Darker Side

Title: His Darker Side 

Author/Artist: shimasama

Pairing: Subaru Yagi/Akane Narita

Fandom: Hot Gimmick

Theme: #21 – violence; pillage/plunder; extortion

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

"Gross!"

Subaru let out a soft sigh, choosing to ignore Akane and his sister's disgusted remarks. What did he care what they thought, anyway? The game he was practically dashing through wasn't even his; it belonged to a friend from school. Besides, was it his fault that Asahi had decided to invite Akane Narita-his newly appointed stalker-over to watch? _Not even._

The game wasn't excessively gory, either. The mature rating meant absolutely nothing—the violence was pathetic and the blood coming out of his enemies was, for the most part, bright pink. There was no extortion, prostitution, swearing… The worst the language got was "god damn."

"Ugh, did you see the way his body exploded?"

Although in public Subaru tended to be shy, in his own home when he felt targeted he wasn't so nice. He threw the controller to the ground and turned around to stare at the two girls who had pulled up chairs behind the sofa. Akane looked caught, Asahi seemed to playing innocent.

"If the game offends you so much, why don't you go back to Asahi's room and do something rated E for everyone?" Subaru breathed heavily, trying desperately to ignore the look of awe and obvious approval in his stalker's eyes.

His sister seemed not to have noticed. "But Akane-chan is staying over. We'll be in my room for hours."

Subaru turned away just as he felt his cheeks turn a bright shade of red. His mother was out of town; otherwise Akane would not have been able to spend the night. Their mother obviously thought she was protecting Akane from Subaru, when in fact she had it backwards. Their father cared a lot less. If his one-and-only daughter wanted a friend to stay overnight, he was more than willing to let her.

Baka Asahi… 

His sister found his embarrassment highly entertaining. "In my room, obviously. You're such a pervert, Subaru." The girls giggled in unison, but Akane had a suspicious twinkle in her eye, as if she knew something that the Yagi siblings obviously did not. The look embedded a foreboding feeling in Subaru's stomach.

Later that night, when Mr. Yagi had returned home, they settled down to eat dinner. Asahi then proceeded to tattle on Subaru by saying that he had been showing the girls dirty and violent video games—getting Subaru grounded for a week and confined to his room for the rest of the night. This was all pretty normal, with the exception of Akane constantly rubbing her leg against his supposedly "by accident."

Subaru was starting to truly like the idea of being stuck in his room all night.

By the time the two girls were tucked into bed, Subaru had been playing one of his handheld video games for over two hours. Asahi and Akane had watched a horrendous romance movie that, with its sound effects, could have been more graphic than his borrowed video game. He had searched relentlessly for his headphones until he realized Asahi had stolen them earlier that week and had yet to return them. He made due with piling a couple of his beanies and headbands down over his ears while he played.

He watched the hall light go off by the crack below his door. He let out a soft sigh of relief and slipped off his improvised earmuffs. Yawning, Subaru turned off his game and got ready to sleep for the night. He got off his bed-he had been lying down while gaming-and walked over to his dresser, taking off his shirt as he went.

"Hyaaah!"

A rather feminine voice came from behind him, and a few stray limbs clamped around him while a lot of weight was suddenly thrust upon his shoulders. Unable to hold up said weight, Subaru fell backwards, luckily onto his bed. Someone fell underneath him with a squeal. Subaru was surprised to notice that he had yet to utter a sound. He picked himself up off his attacker, only to flip over like he had seen in anime in order to be above the female invasion.

A blush crept across his cheeks as he realized who he now had beneath him. The sick feeling in his stomach returned.

"Ooh, help me! Big, strong Subiee has me in his grasp! _Ooh!_" Subaru's blush deepened. Akane Narita's second "ooh" sounded a little dirtier than he was comfortable with. He could barely make out her grinning features in the soft moonlight coming through his room's window. "What are you going to do with me now, Yagi-kun?" Akane's voice had turned husky, which shocked Subaru out of his numb state. He pushed himself up and off her while she let out a seemingly disappointed groan.

"Wh-what are you doing here? Does Asahi know you're here?" Subaru stuttered, trying to get out the right words. Akane rolled her eyes and sat up. They were both on their knees on Subaru's bed. He _really_ did not want her in here. She was starting to scare him.

"Your sister sleeps like a rock. The world could explode right now and all she would do is roll over." Akane swung her legs over the side of Subaru's bed, obviously pouting. Subaru tried hard to look away—trying not to give her the attention she obviously wanted. "Besides," she continued, "I'm not ready to go to sleep yet." Akane's eyes wandered as she said this, and suddenly Subaru was very aware of his ready-for-bed state. He scrambled off his bed, grabbing his shirt from a pile on the floor, and hastily put it back on. Akane pouted again. "You're no fun, Subiee-kun."

Subaru was now sitting on his desk chair, his hands clasping his knees. "R-right. Since I'm n-no fun, you should g-go back to Asahi's r-room." He could tell his stuttering continued to amuse Akane. What would it take to get her to go away?

Akane slid off his bed and strolled over to him, leaning close with her hands to either side of him, resting on his desk. "I'll go back…but only if I get a kiss first." Subaru gulped while the girl in front of him grinned. This was not good. Taking a deep breath, Subaru placed his hands on Akane's slim shoulders, and pushed her away from him. He watched her frown even as he stood up and took a step towards her.

"You'll go back _now_, Narita-san." Subaru could tell that his formal response hurt her. Her eyes drifted slowly to her feet, her earlier confidence diminished. Subaru had not wanted to hurt her, not really. He was not sure what he had wanted to do, but pushing Akane close to tears was definitely not it.

"I'll be going now…" Akane mumbled, her voice revealing how small she felt at that moment. She turned away from him slowly, before taking a few shuffled steps towards his door. He caught her wrist as she reached for the doorknob.

He wasn't sure what to do after he had tugged her back, turned her around. A strength and instinct her never knew he possessed took over his body instead.

Kissing Akane Narita was better than any of Subaru's anime heroine dreams. Somehow, he felt more in control of the kiss—although Akane was obviously more experienced in kissing. Subaru felt elated, whole, wonderful, so many things all at the same time.

It was over quickly enough, and they both whispered hushed "good nights" before Akane finally left the room.

When she was finally gone, Subaru fell swiftly onto his bed, amazed at what he had done. When had such a daring side appeared within him? It was extremely difficult to get to sleep that night, even after he was in his pajama pants, staring at the ceiling from his bed. He lost count of how many times he touched his lips with his fingertips, or stared in wonder at his hands.

When he finally did fall asleep, he dreamed of a darker part of him, a violent side. He performed terrifying acts, but always upon evil. He saved a damsel in distress that was too terrified of him to leave her confinement, and the look she gave him was suspiciously like the one Akane had worn when he had been so cold to her. He awoke the next morning completely exhausted. He got dressed and slipped out of the apartment before anyone had woken up, a parcel clutched in his hands.

He returned the borrowed video game to his friend from school; his only comment that he could not finish it, for it gave him nightmares.


	3. Lucky Bears

Title: **Lucky Bears**

Author/Artist: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #10 - #10

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

**Authors Note:** Spoiler for volume 9, but only a minor one.

He wasn't supposed to be perfect.

Subaru was a one hundred percent dork to the core. Dorks were supposed to be as far from perfect as you could get. Dork, as a title, implies imperfection.

He wasn't supposed to spend all of his Christmas and New Year's money on me. He wasn't supposed to waste his time getting together five sets of Rare Bears, ten in each set, just so I would pass entrance exams. And now that I think about it, I was trying to pass the entrance exams to _his_ school. He could have just encouraged me to study. He didn't have to be perfect.

Ten Rare Bears are a full set. Each set of ten allows for one wish. Ten for just one measly wish.

But Subaru didn't want me to have just one wish. So he gave me five. For Valentine's Day, from the boy who I wasn't sure even gave a damn about me, I received fifty Rare Bears.

Ten Rare Bears to forgive him.

Forty more to succeed on my exams.

And although he doesn't know it, I didn't use all four sets left over on my exams. In fact, I used the final set of ten on something a little more important to me.

Just between you and me, I used the power of ten Rare Bears to wish that he would kiss me again.


	4. Treat

Title: **Treat**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #23 – candy

Disclaimer: I don't own Hot Gimmick. Nope nope nope!

She tried to keep her heartbeat slow, as if he could hear it beating from inside his apartment. She grasped the plastic bag in front of her with all her might. Adjusting her mask just slightly, straightening her dress and then her wings, and finally her halo. She then knocked gently on the door, two times.

He opened the door, obviously having just resurfaced from a video game. There was a glazed look on his eyes: he must have just won. "I'm sorry, we don—Akane?"

"Trick or treat!" She said, a smile on her face. He ran a hand through his dark spikes, staring at her in amazement. She had not meant the dress to be so short, truly, but a series of failed hemming jobs led to it being impossibly short. She realized this again when his eyes trailed down to her legs.

"We don't have any candy." He finally finished, his eyes returning to her face, a blush staining her cheeks.

"Okay, here!" She placed a little piece of chocolate in his hand and proceeded to giggle, as the bewildered look returned to his eyes. "Happy Halloween, Subiee-kun!" And, leaning up just a little bit, she pecked him on the cheek. His face reddened, and before she could pull her hand from his-where she had placed the candy-he grasped her fingers in his own. "What?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

He leaned forward and placed a quick, gentle kiss on her lips. She relished in the feeling until he pulled away. "What was that for?"

He shrugged a shoulder, still holding her hand. "I lied. I had a little candy for you."


	5. I'm All Yours

Title: **I'm All Yours**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #1 – look over here

Disclaimer: I don't own Hot Gimmick. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

He never just _looked_ at her. He was always too embarrassed, too worried about being polite. She didn't want him to just be polite. She was perfectly content with him, even if only for a little while, acting like a normal teenage boy. She was his girlfriend, for Pete's sake! He was allowed to _look_ when she dressed up just for him. Chivalry was nice and all—but she liked being adored and seen as beautiful, too!

Once, for their anniversary (three months!), she dressed up in a short, black, strapless dress and brought chocolates, like the ones from that fated Valentine's Day, to his apartment. She had convinced Asahi to get her parents out of the apartment so they could be alone. When Subaru answered the door he turned a cute shade of crimson and slammed the door in her face. She had heard him breathing heavily before he opened the door again.

Akane had smiled, leaned up and kissed him, and then whispered sweetly into his ear: "You can look over here once in a while, Subie-kun. I'm all yours."


	6. Fragile

Title: **Fragile**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita/Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #11 – gardenia

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

Note: I think this turned out slightly OOC.

He was afraid to break her.

She was so precious, so fragile…she had been hurt and used and abused before. He didn't want to hurt her too.

She was his flower—maybe not gentle, but still perfect. Nonetheless, he didn't want to use her.

But he _needed_ her all the same.

…Did she need him too?


	7. Runaway

Title: **Runaway**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita/Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #4 – our distance and that person

Disclaimer: I don't own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

When Akane was five years old she ran away from home. It was only for a day, since all she had taken with her was four dollars and her windbreaker. But she had had a lot of fun. She went to the arcade in the middle of what would have been her kindergarten school day. She kept winning tokens to play more games until the pimple-y faced teen at the front counter asked her where her mommy was. She had just stuck out her tongue at him and ran away.

At fifteen, Akane thought she was too old for running away. But when she saw him with some girl from his gaming club, laughing and being, well, _happy_, she felt the familiar sting in the corners of her eyes. And then she ran. She didn't know where she was going, or what she would do when she got there, but she couldn't stop running.

Ironically, she ended up just inside the door of her family's apartment. Her back was against the door and her hand was clasped around the doorknob.

She heard the quick footsteps a few seconds later, before she had the chance to catch her breath. She knew-or at least, she hoped she knew-who it was. He tried the doorknob, but she had locked the door. She heard him curse and, though he almost never cursed, knew now for sure who it was. The sound of something hitting against the door sent vibrations through the parts of her body that rested against the door. He was knocking his head against the thick wood. When the noise stopped, she could imagine Subaru Yagi with his forehead still against the door, his eyes tightly shut.

"Akane," he moaned through the door, and the girl in question couldn't help blushing, "please open the door."

"No," she whispered, but she knew he heard her.

"Please," he pleaded with her. She shook her head, though she knew he couldn't see her. "Just tell me what I did."

The sound of his voice had made her forget why she was mad at him. And now, she still couldn't remember. Then the images of the girl who made him happier than she did came flashing through her mind.

Just a silly piece of wood stood between them, but it felt like they were at opposite ends of the Great Wall of China. Akane wondered vaguely if this was how Hatsumi felt whenever something got in the way of she and Ryoki. If it was, then Akane could understand Hatsumi's inability to deal with it. But Akane was not Hatsumi. She was much stronger emotionally than her sister was, and she always knew what she wanted.

She slowly opened the door, her back still facing Subaru. He watched the shuddering of her shoulders and immediately knew she was crying. He put his arms around her, noticing how strange it was for him to be the strong of the two for once.

At five years old, Akane had run away from home, only to come back because she had nowhere else to go.

At fifteen, Akane had run away to home, only to wait for that person to come and catch her.

"You don't have to run anymore," Subaru whispered fiercely from behind her, his face buried on her shoulder. "There doesn't have to be distance anymore."

She looked at him over her shoulder, tears still running kisses down her cheeks. "I know," she whispered back. Then she cleared her throat and swallowed, raising her voice a little. "You just make me so _jealous_ sometimes."


	8. They Left Her Alone

Title: **They Left Her Alone**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #9 – dash

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.  
**Note:** Spoiler for Volume 10. AU, since I don't know what happens in Volume 11. Also, more OOC attitudes, since once again, I don't know what happens, or Akane's take on it.

_They left her. How could they_ leave_ her? What was going _on

His feet were starting to hurt, but he couldn't stop. He needed to find Akane before she did something stupid.

--Not that she was stupid. She wasn't. Not in the least. But she was hurt, and he had seen her when she was hurt before…

_Where _are_ you?_

Playing video games late at night, Subaru had only half-heard the concerned noise on his mother's face as she spoke with "Narita-san." When he finally registered the name, he had practically thrown the controller to his Playstation 2 across the room.

They had _left_ her.

His mother had been brief: Hatsumi and Shinogu were both missing, and Akane had gone running off, supposedly to "look for them."

But Subaru knew better. He recalled the conversation they had had not too long ago in her bedroom (she had asked him to study with her! That was all!):

"_She doesn't get it." Akane quipped, seemingly out of nowhere. Subaru looked up from her math book where he was trying to figure out the next problem-he wondered why she had wanted his help if _math _in the first place-and stared at her._

"_Who?"_

"_Hatsumi. She's got guys all over her and she just keeps being selfish." Akane looked at him. "She had you, even. But she doesn't get it!"_

_Subaru was bewildered. What was she talking about now? "Shinogu loves her." Akane brought her knees up to her chest. "Asahi told me. And Ryoki loves her too." Tears were beginning to come from her eyes. Subaru wasn't sure what to do. "And Azusa—even if he doesn't say it, he cares about her. But she keeps leading them all on." Now she was quietly crying. Her voice was cracking. Subaru placed an arm around her shoulders while she buried her head in her knees._

"_I'm sure Hatsumi will choose soon." Subaru whispered to her, only to hear another choked sob._

"_She won't! She doesn't even get it! Shinogu wants to run away with her! I heard him talking to himself about it! They all think I'm stupid and don't know what's going on! BUT I DO! THEY'RE GOING TO LEAVE ME! THEY ALL ARE!" Akane cried loudly, raising her head only to bury it in Subaru's chest. He froze for a moment, once again not sure where his hands should go, but as her grip tightened on his t-shirt he began rubbing her back with one hand._

"_I don't think they're going to leave you… But if they do… I won't."_

Now he desperately needed to find her. He had looked everywhere in the complex, the roof even-where he hadn't even found Ryoki-and she hadn't been there. But soon enough he had realized where, just maybe, she might have gotten to.

It was cold outside, so there weren't many people at the little outlet mall where Subaru went often for Gundam toys.

There she was.

Next to the machines, a crumpled girl looking younger than she had in many, many years was rocking back and forth. As there was next to no one about, she was being left alone by anyone who happened to pass by. Subaru crossed the street and came close to her, quietly, not trying to interrupt her as she cried.

She didn't want to be alone.

"I-I knew they would go…" Akane was sniffling. She looked up with red eyes and tear-streaked cheeks at Subaru, as if she had never seen him before. "But I still couldn't believe they-without even saying goodbye-" Subaru placed a hand on her cheek and she stopped, staring at him, confused.

His eyes softened as she left out a small sneeze. Akane played the role of someone experienced beyond her years-which she was, Subaru thought, and blushed-but she couldn't shake the fact that she was still young. And regardless of how immature she may have thought him, Subaru still happened to be older. He gently leaned over and kissed her forehead as her tears ceased, then brought her into his arms.

He wasn't sure where his hands were supposed to fit, and the motion of holding her was awkward, but he didn't know what else to do.

They had left her alone. So he had run to find her. And now, he would never leave her.


	9. Celebrity

Title: **Celebrity**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #7 – superstar

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and the lovely Miki Aihara.

Subaru is always nervous when they go out in public together. She doesn't seem to care about his nervousness. It's as if she can completely ignore the stares she gets from other young men as they walk together. And those young men don't send any envious looks Subaru's way. They merely look at him and wonder why a beautiful girl like Akane Narita would settle for someone second rate.

She might as well be a celebrity, in her always-in-style clothing. Her hair is always done just so, and she has a specific smile for all those fawning admirers.

It's hard sometimes for Subaru to remember that Akane is the eye of many males' affections. When they are in his apartment, or hers, Akane is just herself, worried about what Subaru thinks of her and where her hands should go…

But then Subaru remembers, when she's smiling and being flirtatious and teasing with other men, that she wasn't always his. She has a past, one that is ever-present, and she can't change completely just because she is with him.

So was they walk down the sidewalk, he tries hard to ignore those staring eyes and just be in the moment with her, his celebrity. He wants to tell all those admirers that he wonders sometimes too—why she chose him. But after a while he just stopped asking.

"Subie-kun, just _ignore_ them." She whispers, grabbing his hand and entwining their fingers. He looks down at her-he is still a little taller-and smiles sheepishly. "Someday they'll realize that I'm no one's superstar but yours."

And then he remembers that right now, she _is_ his. It doesn't matter what happened in the past, because she is with him now, and now is all that matters.


	10. When She Whispers

Title: **When She Whispers**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #19 – red

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

Red.

His cheeks after she kisses him.

Her cheeks after he tells her she's beautiful.

Red.

His latest beanie that he places over his gravity-defying spikes.

Her new jacket that he told her immediately he loved.

Red.

His eyes when he's stayed up too late.

Her eyes when she stays up with him.

Red.

The digital numbers on the alarm clock that tell him he's late again.

The blotches on her face that show she's been crying.

Red.

The mark on his face when he finally shows up.

Her hand after he chooses to bless her with his presence.

Red.

Their hands clasped together when a group of guys walks by.

Red.

Her cheeks after he kisses her.

Red.

His cheeks when she whispers, very quietly…

Red.

"I love you."


	11. An Invitation

Title: **An Invitation**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #2 – news; letter

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_, it belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

Author's Note: Slight spoiler for volume #11 of _Hot Gimmick_.

Akane looked down at her cell phone, dismayed, and yet intrigued. Kazama didn't really mean… Did he? She rolled her eyes, deleting the message and slipping her cell phone into her pocket. Of course he didn't mean it. Kazama liked to joke about things like that.

But maybe…

Shaking her head quickly, Akane felt herself falling back to reality, and her eyes took into the sight of Subaru, forming words she didn't quite understand for a moment:

"Oh, hey, Akane. The teddy bear machine's free now. Wanna play?"

The buzzing and bustle of the arcade around them suddenly returned at Akane sighed, giving her consent before reaching her hand in her pocket, feeling the cell phone. Oh, what did it matter if he was kidding? It was flattering for him to ask her out, even if she was taken.

Subaru turned, a small smile on his face, and gestured for her to hurry up. Rolling her eyes, she slipped her hand out of her pocket and trotted to catch up with him, taking his arm with both her hands and letting him lead her to the teddy bear machine.

_I wonder what Subaru-kun would do, if he knew_… She had to giggle, trying to imagine Subaru getting protective or manly. The image just made her laugh harder. Subaru looked down at her, confused, but taking her laughter as enjoyment, continued on with the game.

_Oh, he's too good for me sometimes_. Akane thought to herself, the invitation still lying ever present in the back of her mind. Trying to rid herself of it, Akane leaned up and pressed a kiss to Subaru's cheek, just to watch him blush.


	12. You Aren't His, Right?

**Title:** You Aren't His, Right?

**Author:** shimasama

**Pairing:** Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

**Fandom:** _Hot Gimmick_

**Theme:** #26 – if only I could make you mine

**Disclaimer: **I don't own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

**Author's Note:** AU. I wanted to show the awkwardness of Akane and Subaru's relationship starting out. I don't think they could just get used to each other that easily, especially with how popular Akane seems to be with other boys. But Subaru seems like the kind of boy to get jealous easily, so I wanted to play with that too.

_LilAkane has signed on._

Subaru stared at his computer screen, uncomprehending. When had he added… A smile crept onto his face. As Asahi turned up her music on the stereo in the living room, Subaru typed a few keys on his computer and put his headphones on.

_Enter chat?_

Akane rolled her eyes. Subaru was such a dweeb. She looked around the kitchen absently. The family was out—Shinogu had work, Hatsumi was staying after school, her mom had gone shopping with Hikaru, and her dad was working his butt off, as usual. She had the house, and her dad's laptop, to herself.

LilAkane: hey

GundamOtakuS: Hi.

LilAkane: u need somethin'?

GundamOtakuS: No… Just wanted to talk.

LilAkane: k

LilAkane: 'bout what?

GundamOtakuS: I dunno… How's school?

LilAkane: u wanna talk 'bout _school_? y?

LilAkane: nvm

LilAkane: school's boring

LilAkane: and all the guy's r the same

GundamOtakuS: Eheh… Okay…

LilAkane: so u watchin' anime or somethin?

GundamOtakuS: No… Just preoccupied.

LilAkane: With _what_?

GundamOtakuS: Um… I have to go. Talk later.

_GundamOtakuS has left this chat._

_GundamOtakuS has signed off_.

Akane stared at her computer, bewildered. _He invited _me_ and then_ leaves_? Sheesh._ She started chatting with some of her friends from school while surfing, only to get a message on her screen a few minutes later.

_Enter chat?_

The question came from a screen name she did not recognize: TenBoyBears. She stared at the name for a bit, trying to figure out if one of her friends at school had said anything about their friends IMing her, or if they were changing their screen names. She could not remember anyone in particular, but she entered the chat anyway.

LilAkane: hi?

TenBoyBears: hey

LilAkane: who is this?

TenBoyBear: does it matter?

LilAkane: u friends w/Asahi?

TenBoyBears: u could say that

LilAkane: ok

LilAkane: what is it?

TenBoyBears: …

TenBoyBears: u rly dunno who this is?

LilAkane: no, y?

TenBoyBears: i thought the sn gave it away

LilAkane: um…

LilAkane: Kazama?

TenBoyBears: wha—no!

TenBoyBears: y—Why would he IM you?

LilAkane: SUBARU?

TenBoyBears: Yeah.

_LilAkane has left this chat._

_LilAkane has signed off_.

Akane slammed her dad's laptop shut and crossed her arms over her chest. What a moron! Pretending to be somebody else. And what was with the screen name? What was it supposed to give away, "TenBoyBears?"

_Oh god…_ Akane smacked her forehead repeatedly just as someone knocked on the apartment door. She set the laptop aside and went to the door, opening it swiftly.

"Is Shinogu around?" Akane looked up into the eyes of Kazama, who was looking down at her, a smile on his face.

"No. He's at work. Shouldn't you be there too?" Akane asked accusingly, with just a hint of flirtation in her voice. She couldn't help it. Kazama leaned in the doorway, the same flirtation evident on his features.

"I should. But there aren't any girls nearly as pretty as you at work." Kazama said in his distinct accent, and Akane rolled her eyes. "Aw, c'mon, Akane, don't look at me like that. I thought you might want to go to lunch with me?" He looked at her hopefully, reaching out his hand to toy with some of her hair. Akane attempted to look indecisive. "Fine, if not, then give me a little kiss and I'll go away."

Akane looked at him, bewildered at the request. Never one to back away from a guy who liked her, Akane leaned up to give him a peck on the cheek.

Unknown to her, Kazama figured she was just going to kiss him on the cheek, and tilted his head to try and capture her lips instead.

Unknown to them both, Subaru had run to the elevator and then through the hallways on the Narita's floor to try and apologize. He did not want her to be angry with him. Just as he was about to turn the corner to get to her apartment, he heard voices and stopped himself. He leaned around the corner, and all he could see was Kazama, his big shoulders taking up the entire doorway of Akane's apartment. Then he heard Kazama's request.

"Sh-she can't!" Subaru blurted, coming out into the open. Kazama snapped his head around to look at Subaru. A silly smile came onto Kazama's face. Akane was looking at Subaru now as well, and Subaru felt his cheeks grow hot.

Kazama tsked. "Aw, too bad." In one quick second, he leaned down and pecked Akane on the cheek. "If only I could make you mine, sweetie," he whispered into her ear, and then turned on his heel. He patted Subaru on the head as he passed the boy who looked like he wanted to kill Kazama but was not sure how. Subaru watched him go, his fists clenched.

"Subaru, he didn't mean anything by it." Akane said idly, now leaning where Kazama had been, looking at him with a smile on her face. She liked making him jealous, but she did not like the dangerous look in his eyes.

"Sure he didn't." Subaru murmured nastily, lowering his gaze to the ground. Akane, for the second time in a matter of minutes, rolled her eyes.

"Oh, come _on_." Akane groaned, grabbing onto Subaru's collar and dragging him into the apartment. "You kiss better than he does, anyway." She said, mostly to comfort him, not necessarily believing it. But in order to solidify her point, she kissed him sweetly on the mouth. He reciprocated almost immediately, and the awkward situation in the hallway was lost.


	13. He Remembered to Say

Title: **He Remembered to Say "Good Night"**

Author: Shima And Tempis

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #24 - good night

Disclaimer: I don't own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara. Besides, why would I want to own it? I am completely and utterly content with Aihara-sama's ending.

Subaru was never sure what to do when he took Akane back to her apartment at the end of a date. For the longest time he figured Akane just knew what she was doing, and he didn't try anything different. Of course all they had ever done in saying "good night" was squeeze each other's hand and look into each other's eyes, but Subaru had just thought that was how Akane was.

So that wasn't completely true. He knew Akane probably did a lot more... intimate things with her other dates in saying good night. But he wasn't one of her other dates. He thought that maybe because he was different from them, that was why Akane didn't try anything after a date.

How could he have realized she was waiting for him to move first?

They had gone to the movies. Subaru couldn't even remember what they had seen, he had been so nervous with Akane sitting right next to him, her hand on his. He remembered how she would tighten her grip when she was scared, or run her thumb over his knuckles if she was content. The simple movement of her hand was enough of a motion picture for him.

They had held hands on the way back, he remembered. They had even interlaced their fingers together, the way normal couples do. In the elevator up to her floor, Akane hadn't said anything, just continued to hold his hand while leaning against the elevator wall, staring at the digital screen that told them what floor they were on.

She hadn't opened her apartment door immediately, either. She was still holding his hand, but her free hand rested lightly on the doorknob. Stranger still, she was leaning against her door, so that she could look at him. Subaru blushed at how, with her arms apart, he could see the gentle curve of her neck as it sloped underneath her top.

He remembered she had bit her lip, tilting her head to the side and staring at him as if trying to read between the lines of something she wasn't sure she understood.

"Are you going to kiss me, Subaru?"

The question had caught him so off guard he had dropped her hand and taken a few stumbled steps backwards. "Wh-what?"

She pursed her lips and looked at him again, her brow furrowed. "Are you going to kiss me?" She repeated, slower this time, enunciating each word as if he were a child.

Subaru couldn't think of an intelligent response, but cursed himself when she folded her arms across her chest, obstructing his view--no matter how embarrassed he was that he kept looking.

"Do you want me to kiss you instead?" Akane added a second later, when Subaru had not answered.

"What? No! I mean, I want you to... But--" He stopped short, embarrassed and frustrated. He had never done this before! Why did saying "good night" have to be so hard?

Akane didn't interrupt the silence that followed. Her eyes fell down to their feet as her grip tightened on the doorknob, as if she was ready to go in. Panicked, Subaru grabbed her free hand again and jerked her clumsily forward, touching their lips together in a feather-light kiss before setting her back on two balanced feet.

"G-good night." He added after she had stared at him, dazed, for a few moments.

"G'night." She responded, smiling in triumph before opening her door and entering her apartment.

Subaru stood outside in the hall, staring at his hand as if he wasn't sure how it worked. "W-wow." He said out loud, before turning on his heel back towards the elevator.

He didn't get the chance to hear Akane, leaning against the closed front door and touching her lips with her fingertips, whisper the same thing.


	14. Afraid To Be Expecting

Title: **Afraid To Be Expecting**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #22 – cradle

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara

Author's Note: Takes place **during** the first volume of the manga series. (If you don't understand that, read the first volume again.)

Akane looked uncomfortable as her friends passed the store of baby supplies. They looked at all the little clothes and cradles and strollers in the window, even at the babies held by their mothers in the store itself. Her friends cooed and got excited when the small children reacted with smiles. Akane tried to smile weakly, and resisted the urge to put her hand on her stomach.

When she got out of school that afternoon she knew she could not go home yet. She was not ready. Dejectedly she sat on a bench a block down from the apartment complex so as not to cause a scene. Imagine, a Narita girl looking uncomfortable right in front of the complex by herself. The whispers that could have ensued would have been too much.

Moments later Subaru Yagi came bounding past, his backpack hanging over his shoulder and a few textbooks in his arms. Had he not tripped over his untied shoelaces he may have never seen Akane. But trip he did, and a few of the books in his hands fell to the ground. The pitiful sight struck a chord with Akane, and she felt her eyes narrow of their own accord.

"Geez, Yagi-kun, what's the rush?"

He looked blearily up at her, his books only slightly back in his grasp. The look in Subaru's eyes startled her and by pure instinct her hand flickered over her stomach, like the ghost of a kiss after lovers have parted. She hoped he had not seen the motion, but she glared at him anyway as if to say "don't you _dare_ mention it." Subaru let out a small sigh, gathered his things and continued his rush down the street without a word.

Courage finally gathered, Akane went to find her sister. She needed a favor.


	15. Tipsy

Title: **Tipsy**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #18 – "say ahh…"

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

A/N: **Takes place during volume 5**. Warning, because there is a mention of boobs and arousal. Mostly taken from the manga itself, not my own words. **Note that I changed the rating to T just in case.**

Subaru knew he couldn't just change Akane. Being almost best friends with her sister gave him the stories. He knew pretty quickly after Hatsumi found out Akane had started sneaking off with guys much older than she was. Of course at that point he hadn't realized he had any feelings for her—they were rarely in the same room alone, and when Akane was around she usually managed to say something derogatory to him.

He wasn't sure when he'd found out she'd had alcohol. He knew before the sort of impromptu party at Ryoki's apartment, but he couldn't remember ever _seeing_ her under the effects of alcohol before. And it bothered him immensely that she could drink and be happy so easily. It didn't help that his sister had been in the room only moments before, watching Akane get smashed.

"Subiee…" Akane planted herself onto the couch next to him, looking into his eyes with her own bleary ones. She hiccupped, as their faces got too close. He moved himself away from her. She held up a can at him, and tilted it towards his lips. "Say ahh…" She giggled, but Subaru kept his mouth shut and tried to move away again. Giving up, she went back to drinking from the can herself. Moments later she tried again.

"Hey, shoobaru…" Akane slurred, moving towards him again. "How come you're always so weird around me?" She asked, although the words weren't as clear. Subaru watched her get uncomfortably close to him, and he tried to ignore the feelings other than a small amount of disgust at the alcohol on her breath that were bottling up inside of him.

"You really don't like me, huh?" She sing-songed, although there was a melancholy lilt to her drunken slurring. Her eyes looked sad as she got really close to him. Subaru was freaking out, to say the least. Why did his sister leave him alone with Akane?

"You don't think I'm pretty?" She asked, and with how close she had gotten Subaru could see the kiss of red tint on her cheeks, flushed from the alcohol. "Or is it my boobs? They aren't big enough for you?"

Subaru choked on his own spit when she slurred that at him, and fidgeted in his seat. He couldn't move any farther off the couch without falling on the floor. Then she caught his hand in hers and moved it towards her chest. Subaru's eyes grew large as she asked him in a small voice: "Too small?" Then she placed his hand on her breast. Instinctively his hand clenched because he was highly uncomfortable with situation—and then he realized what he had just done.

"Oh! S-sorry! I didn't mean—"

"It's okay, squeeze 'em all you want. I don't mind. If you wanna do it, that's fine by—"

"_What_?" Subaru choked, shoving her away from him. "What are you saying?! Girls shouldn't say stuff like that!" Panicked, he ran off to Ryoki's bathroom, slamming the door. All he could call was "I'm getting a drink of water" before his disappeared.

He collapsed against the bathroom wall, falling to the ground, his head in his hands. He was panicked, certainly, but not about the fact that Hatsumi's little sister had just put his hands on her breasts. He was more freaked out about the fact that his body had…well… _reacted_ so quickly to it. He banged his head against the wall, frustrated. "What am I going to do?!" He berated himself, staring at the door, glad he couldn't see the girl on the other side of it.


	16. Such A Dweeb

Title: **Such A Dweeb**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #16 – invincible; unrivaled

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_, it belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

Note: AU, would take place before the series.

Sweat poured down Subaru's face as he clung to the plastic gun in his hand, his eyes intent on the multicolor screen in front of him. Next to him, a friend from school looked just as nervous, holding a gun himself. It took Subaru no time to reload anymore, just a quick flick of the wrist to point the gun off screen and he was back to shooting enemies as if he had never paused. His friend was not so talented.

There were always perks to being the best.

"Geez, Yagi! Couldn't you take it easy on me?" His friend commented as the top scores came up. GundamOtakuS held the top three ranks on this particular game. Many of the others in the arcade had similar results.

Subaru smiled a little to himself. "You promised you'd get me that limited edition model if I beat you ten times in a row. I take these things seriously." He stuffed his hands in his pockets as they walked out into the frigid night air, leaving the blinking lights of the arcade behind. Outside, a couple was kissing fiendishly beneath a streetlight. Subaru could not help but stare, as his friend continued walking down the street, talking to himself.

"And I really don't think it's fair—Hey! Yagi! You coming or what?" His friend called from down the street, rather loudly. The couple broke apart abruptly at the noise, and Subaru's eyes widened when he recognized the female of the pair as the younger Narita daughter. She looked across the street, straight at him as the lights overhead changed and she and her date walked across the street.

Subaru watched her carefully as she came closer, his friend still calling to him. "Gaming king! Get your butt over here or you're paying for pizza!"

Akane Narita clung tightly to the arm of her date, a high school student by the looks of it. She rolled her eyes at Subaru as she passed him. "You are such a dweeb," she commented in passing, before becoming absorbed in her date once more. Subaru watched her go, gawking.

How was it that in five small words he could go from feeling invincible to feeling like dirt beneath a junior high girl's feet?


	17. Awkward

Title: **Awkward**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #20 – the road home

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_ it belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

Their first walk home was awkward, to say the least.

Akane didn't like her new high school uniform. It didn't fit her properly yet, and made her look much younger than she actually was.

When the final bell rang at the end of the day, everyone else seemed to scurry out of the building, only to loiter aimlessly on the front lawn.

The first day of school ritual, it seemed, was to take place on school grounds: the discussion of the day, teachers, students, who was wearing what, etc. Akane was at ease among her friends during this part of the ritual.

Then Subaru and a few of his otaku friends came down the front steps, deep in conversation.

Simultaneously they saw each other even though they were not close. A blush stained Subaru's cheeks and he seemed to lose track of what his friends had been saying.

Akane was a bit more composed. She quickly said goodbye to her friends and strode across the lawn, staring Subaru down with a smile on her face. Subaru's friends all stopped to watch where this pretty girl was heading—and she saw the shock on their faces when they realized she was coming towards _them_. Being in different schools had kept their relationship more or less a secret. Akane was ready to put it out in the open.

"Hey, Subie-kun," she spoke slowly, ignoring the shocked looks of his two friends. She smiled brightly at him, and he looked down at her-as down as he could, being they were almost the same height-and she saw the ghost of a smile cross his lips. He was still shocked, awkward, and didn't know what to do, but he obviously appreciated her taking the lead.

"H-hey Akane." He answered, and Akane did something to surprise them both. She leaned forward and slipped her hand in his. "Wh-what?" He asked, looking over at his friends, who both had their mouths open.

"Walk me home?" Akane asked simply, tugging on the sleeve of his uniform. Subaru relaxed at the question and shot a goodbye towards his two friends, who still stood staring at them as if they had just grown two heads each.

Other people stared as they left the front lawn. Subaru was awkward, and they bumped shoulders until Akane leaned against him completely, resting her head on his shoulder as they walked. She felt him slowly relax again as they walked down the sidewalk. Far from the school, no one knew how strange this was—a popular freshman with a geeky senior. They just smiled at them as Akane and Subaru neared the apartment complex.

It was awkward, again, for Subaru to walk her to her door. They stood in the elevator with their hands still clasped, for once not fearing what others might say. Subaru leaned easily against the wall of the elevator as it rose, and Akane smiled at how, out from under the scrutiny of the public eye, he was just her Subaru again.

Standing in front of her door while knowing that no one was home was also awkward. Subaru didn't know whether to just leave her there or wait until she had closed the door. And what if he was invited inside? What happened when the Narita family came home?

But there was one thing, on their first walk home, that wasn't awkward. When Akane leaned up the little bit that was needed and kissed Subaru on the lips, he responded without awkwardness. He tightened his grip on her hand and leaned into her, as if this was the most natural thing in the world for both of them. And, really, it was. Maybe not completely natural to Subaru, who still wasn't sure he was any good at it, but natural to _them_.

When Akane leaned back against her door, Subaru was a tad more awkward than he had been before. He wasn't used to being the one who pressed against the other fully in a kiss. But he let it happen.

And when the kiss was finished, Akane smiled at him and they awkwardly let their hands fall apart. She touched his face once, quickly, before opening her door and floating inside. Subaru watched the door close and sighed.

Maybe walking home wouldn't be _completely_ awkward.


	18. Mistakes We Knew We Were Making

Title: **Mistakes We Knew We Were Making**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #27 - overflow

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_, it belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara. Nor to I own the song "Mistakes We Knew We Were Making" by Mae. Although the song rocks.

**Author's Commentary**: I really think the manga doesn't handle the fact that Akane is so sexually experienced--I mean, the whole reason the story _starts_ is because Akane has had sex without protection. And even if Subaru has "tamed" her, that doesn't change Akane's past experience. So I thought I'd tackle that.

--

_We made plans to be unbreakable,_

_Love was all we knew._

"Subaru, wait up!" Akane chirped, running towards her boyfriend. He turned around, the wind whipping at them both ferociously. Akane's short bob blew about her face, across her lips.

Subaru stumbled toward her, his hands stuffed in his pockets. Akane reached up to move her hair out of her face, to no avail. It was much too windy. "Geez, you didn't even bother waiting for me!"

The spiky-haired boy shrugged a shoulder. His cheeks and the tip of his nose were pink. "I figured you weren't coming."

Akane looked at him quizzically, reaching to grab his hand out of his pocket. Subaru moved backwards, quickly dodging the move. "What are you talking about?" She asked, looking into his eyes—or rather up at them, thanks to his newest growth spurt.

"You and Kazama seemed to be having a good time."

_No insurance for the unthinkable,_

_Blindly get us through._

Akane looked down at the little white device in her hand, cowering on the closed toilet seat. _Why can't this work any faster?_ she thought impatiently, rocking back and forth. The sounds of her family outside the bathroom door brought her back to reality.

"Yeah, I'm fine, mom!" She called to her mother's worried questioning, then looked down at the pregnancy test. Her eyes widened, and she let out the breath she hadn't meant to be holding.

_We've been searching for a lifetime-_

_Short as it may seem._

Akane didn't mean to bring Shin into her bedroom-she was still unsure what his last name was-but he was kissing her goodnight and suddenly she was opening her door and they were stumbling towards her bedroom. She sighed into his fervent kisses, letting him go as far as he wanted. They'd had a good time on their date, and she knew where it would lead.

By the time he had gotten her clothes off, her mind was already buzzing with pleasure from sex without attachments--and they hadn't even done anything yet. She laughed as he tried to act more experienced than he was, but she let him lead her through the motions that came to a boy by instinct. Sure, it wasn't romantic, but it was awfully fun.

_Riding on the fumes that spark us,_

_While igniting dreams._

Akane had never made out in the back of a car before.

When Kazama had said he needed to talk to her, she'd been afraid it had something to do with Hatsumi and Shinogu--but he had brought her into the back seat of his car instead, and looked at her seriously in the eyes.

"You wouldn't even consider--"

She shook her head, her hair falling into her eyes. She was smiling, however, knowing she had such an effect on an older guy. "Not even. I have a boyfriend, remember?"

"He would never have to know."

_Mistakes we knew we were making,_

_Mistakes we knew we were making._

_Don't think about chances we're taking,_

_Mistakes we knew..._

Akane looked at Hatsumi with fear in her eyes, her hands gripping at her bed sheets, her legs shaking. She wasn't sure how her sister would react, knowing she hadn't been, well, "safe," yet she had never known Hatsumi to get truly angry.

But there was a first time for everything.

Looking at her sister now, hoping that she would just do this favor for her without questions, Akane felt guilt lying just beneath her tough exterior. She shouldn't have been having sex in her bedroom, and she _should've_ been safe.

She tried to ignore the voice that was telling her she shouldn't have been having sex at_ all_.

_Driving in the rain to the hospital_

_Quiet aches intense._

Akane had a date with a cute older guy from a different high school than the one her sister attended the night her father collapsed from exhaustion. When she got the call from her sister, the guy with her-whatever his name had been-refused to drive her to the hospital. He was angry she had even answered the phone while they were eating dinner, and left her on the street just as it began to rain.

By the time she had reached the hospital (by subway), her father was already in recovery. She got a lashing from her mother for not being there sooner, but she knew her mother didn't really mean it. She was distraught over her husband's collapse.

Hatsumi's disappointed glance her way when she entered the waiting room was what made her truly guilty.

_What at once just seemed the impossible_

_Now makes perfect sense._

"Don't even worry about Subaru, Akane. He never has anybody over, let alone any girls." Asahi said loudly, hoping her brother would overhear. He was playing computer games in his bedroom with his headphones on, but the door was open. Akane didn't even glance his way—he was the dorky brother of her best friend. What did she care who he had over?

Asahi wasn't finished. "I mean, geez, Akane, you've had more boyfriends than he's had girl's phone numbers. Subaru is such a dweeb." Akane laughed along with her, but out of the corner of her eye she saw Subaru take one headphone out of his ear, looking out at them. He shook his head, blushing, with a frown on his face. Akane watched the reaction with only slight curiosity, before she went back to doing Asahi's make-up.

_We held hands to face the uncomfortable _

_Cold and lonely room._

Subaru rushed into the waiting room, eyes glazed over. Hatsumi got up quickly to greet him, thanking him endlessly for coming at such short notice. Akane watched them grip hands and seethed. Hatsumi never got made at _Subaru_ for being late. Maybe it was some stupid older child pact between them. She rolled her eyes.

She tried to ignore her mother fawning over him, thanking him for being there too. He looked bashful, running his hand through his messy spikes before sitting down in a chair next to Hatsumi. He looked up at her, raising his hand to greet her, but she turned away from him. She was still in her outfit from her date, and she quickly adjusted her short skirt and sleeveless top, trying to make herself look more dignified. He wasn't even looking at her now.

_Magazines and empty distractions_

_Barely got us through._

Akane and some of her friends-minus Asahi, who had complained loudly that her parents were making her go to her brother's video game tournament-were walking through the magazine section of a bookstore, staring at all the pretty celebrities and womanly advice. Her friends cooed over advice to snag a boy and get him to kiss you, and guffawed at the different columns about seduction and above all, sex. Akane didn't even blush as they talked about how ridiculous it was, trying to get in a guy's pants by dressing sexy or something like that. She laughed with them, agreeing. She would occasionally glance over one of her friend's shoulders as they read particularly scandalous sections out loud, taking note of their advice in her head.

_Mistakes we knew we were making,_

_Mistakes we knew we were making._

_Don't think about chances we're taking,_

_Mistakes we knew..._

"He was just talking to me about Shinogu, Subaru, no big." Tired of trying to convince him, Akane rubbed at her forehead angrily. "Kazama knows I'm off limits, and not just because I'm his friend's sister."

Subaru wasn't convince, and she knew it. She rolled her eyes, tightening her hands on her handbag that she held behind her back. She tried not to remember the cell phone number resting on the back of a fortune cookie fortune beneath her mascara and eye shadow.

_And when we try to think of the life inside,_

_We found ourselves looking at the world through new eyes._

Subaru grabbed her arms, looking at her pleadingly. "You didn't-Akane, please, tell me you—" He broke off, choking on his own words. Akane was teary-eyed, trying so hard to not let her emotions control her, but they were flooding her tear ducts and her heart and there was nothing she could do to stop them.

"I-Of course I didn't-Subaru, please, just look at me—" She tried to get his attention as he started to sob, putting her hand beneath his chin to turn his head up. His eyes were unfocused, puffy, red, probably much like her own. She shook her head, willing her memories away. Willing her emotions to pool out of her pores, instead of having them overflow and drown her. "I didn't. I wouldn't. Subaru, you _have_ to know I wouldn't."

_What can now be said,_

_Oh, little one, on the other side?_

Akane sat alone on a bench outside their apartment complex, crying silently. She clutched Kazama's cell phone number in her hands, unable to crush it because it was so small. To her, it was insignificant that she'd kept it. But to Subaru, who had had his greatest fears come to life, it was everything. And she wanted to crush that doubt within him, get rid of it forever. But it was there, in his eyes, as he held her arms and shook her, demanding she tell him the truth. She had never felt him use such strength before, except when they kissed. Now she felt where his fingers had dug into her skin, where her shoulder muscles snapped in awkward directions.

She hadn't even _called_ him, even if she had thought about it. But the number had been next to her phone on her nightstand when she had invited Subaru in, with a little heart she had drawn in gel pen next to the digits in Kazama's neat handwriting.

_Dance until the band stops playing,_

_Sing with all your might._

A giggle escaped her lips as she swayed her body from side to side with euro beat pumping from the speakers. She had one hand above her head, her arm curved and liquid. The other was gripped tightly around Subaru's willing him to dance. He looked at her with a happy smile on his face, watching her move. He shifted from one foot to another, trying to find a beat, letting her lead his arm with hers to wave above his head. He took her other free hand and brought them both back down to their sides, moving closer to her, hoping to catch some of her free-spirited dancing in the process.

The song changed and Akane squealed, dropping her arms around Subaru's neck. "I love this song!" She yelled over the loud bass intro, before leaning in towards his ear and singing the opening line to him. She was awful, and couldn't hit the low notes of the young man in the song, but Subaru listened anyway, glad she was there, and glad she had thought to bring him where she hadn't before.

_Mistakes we knew we were making._

_Mistakes we knew we were making._

Shin licked at her throat, and she sighed, turning around. "We're in school," she admonished, although there was a teasing giggle to her voice. He smiled at her, the piercing on his lip glinting under fluorescent lights.

"So what?" He asked in a husky voice, his arms around her waist.

She rolled her eyes. "Someone will see, silly," she answered, pushing him away.

He frowned, light bouncing off his lip ring again, and shrugged a shoulder. "Whatever."

_Don't think about chances we're taking._

"I'm sorry," she whispered to the night air.

_Don't think about rules we were breaking._

"I wish that was good enough," a voice behind her whispered quietly, coming from somewhere by her left ear. She turned, and Subaru was standing there, still tear-streaked, his hands stuffed in his pockets.

_Mistakes we knew..._

"I can't change the past, but I can promise I would _never_ do that to you." She breathed into his jacket, finding comfort in his arms around her. Subaru nodded into her shoulder, tears escaping and dropping onto her exposed neck.

_The list goes on and on._

She wasn't pregnant. She had just been late. Akane breathed a sigh, chucking the pregnancy test and box into a dumpster behind her school. She heard Shin's voice somewhere near the front gate, and ran to meet him, only to see him kissing another girl on the neck, his tongue running over her shoulder where he'd pushed down her uniform's collar.

_The list goes on and on._

The older guy saw her about three weeks later, when she was picking up her dad's vitamins. He didn't even ask if she was okay. He came in for a kiss, which she reciprocated, then waved goodbye after buying a box of condoms.

_The list goes on and on._

"Never," Subaru repeated, with a strangled sob.


	19. The Little Things

Title: **The Little Things**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #14 – radio cassette player

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

"_It's a state of bliss, you think you're dreaming_

_It's the happiness inside that you're feeling_

_It's so beautiful it makes you want to cry._

_This innocence is brilliant._"

-"Innocence" by Avril Lavigne

Subaru _always_ seemed to have his headphones on.

In class, which attributed to his poor grades, he managed to sneak one bud into his ear, if not both at the same time. No teacher ever noticed-or if they did, they didn't care enough about his performance to do anything about it. Subaru looked like a nerd, certainly, but he didn't have the grades of one.

It annoyed Akane that he always had his headphones in. The first few times she noticed were for the same reason-she had come by his high school, under the guise of walking home with her sister, in order to start up a chat with him. Prior to their going out, this only frustrated her. She could call out as loud as her lungs could manage, and he would never hear her.

When they began dating, it just made her angry. They never went on official "date," such as going to the movies, but when she walked with him along the shopping center and he still had one headphone it, it drove her crazy. So what if he could hear her?

Akane knew asking would not get it through to Subaru how annoying a boyfriend surgically attached to his headphones was. She knew she couldn't yell at him, either, because Subaru was spooked easily. So a plan formulated in her mind instead of conjugating English verbs in school one day.

"Subaru? Are you listening to me?" Akane asked when she was walking with him home one day. Now that they attended the same school, she always managed to catch him on his way back to the apartment complex.

Subaru only had one headphone in today, and in the ear not facing Akane. He looked at her, startled. "Of course!" He chirped, slightly defensive. Akane stopped, and Subaru did soon after, and he turned to face her completely. "What is it?"

Akane pouted, looking down at their shoes momentarily. "It's just…" She didn't finish; instead, she took a few baby steps forward until they were almost completely pressed together. Subaru's eyes widened just as she looked up into them.

Then, ever so carefully, she hooked her finger around the white headphone cord, and tugged it out of his ear. Without missing a beat, she also leaned up and pressed her lips to his.

Subaru made sure to always have one bud in his ear on their walks home from then on.


	20. He Hadn't Meant It

Title: **He Hadn't Meant It**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #6 – the space between dream and reality

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

Akane stared into the mirror, eyes narrowed, looking at the lip gloss she had just applied. It didn't seem right to her, and she could not figure out why. She continued to stare for a few moments, before the idea hit her. She took her pinky finger and wiped a little bit of the smeared pink gloss from just below her lower lip. She smiled at her reflection, adjusted her miniskirt, and called out to her sister that she was about to leave.

"When are you going to be back?" Hatsumi asked from the kitchen, holding onto their little brother's hand, who was whispering his favorite flavor of ice cream over and over again as if trying to make it appear by magic.

Akane shrugged an shoulder—bare because she was wearing a sleeveless top. "I don't know. Whenever. Don't stress, I'll be back before the 'rents."

Hatsumi pursed her lips at her sister, looking the barely-dressed girl up and down. Then she picked up her little brother in her arms and brushed away her sister's momentary existence. "So, Hikaru? Chocolate ice cream?" Hikaru cheered raucously and seemed to forget his other sister's presence. Hatsumi spun on her heel, nearly losing grip on her brother, before disappearing into the kitchen. Akane rolled her eyes and grabbed her jacket and her purse before slipping out of the apartment.

She chose to don the stairs for once, mostly to watch how skirt moved with her legs, making sure it complimented her body in every way possible. She was so distracted by her own form that she didn't notice the oldest Yagi sibling coming up the stairs in front of her until she crashed into him.

"Ah! Sorry!" Subaru Yagi cried, his arms out so that his hands braced her shoulders, keeping them both from falling down. Akane ran a hand through her tousled hair, pulling away from his grip. "A-Akane! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to, I mean--"

"Whatever, Yagi-kun." Akane cut him off, pulling up her top where it had dipped a little to reveal her strapless bra. She saw the older boy blush a bright red and grinned. Obviously, her outfit was perfect. "Could you move?"

Subaru's eyes widened as he realized he was in her way. "O-oh! Right. Here." He sidestepped and she brushed past him. He could smell her perfume and whatever fruity shampoo she used before she was gone, a blur of color and beauty down the stairs.

That wasn't what he'd wanted to happen, he thought later with a groan in his bedroom. Whether he wanted to admit it or not, the youngest Narita daughter was a very, very pretty girl. And when she went out dressed like that, as she seemed to often, he always wondered what it would be like if he could distract her from her date, and maybe hang out with her. Perhaps get a better whiff of her hair, her perfume. See what it was like to be the guy who had the famed Akane Narita as a date for the night.

Shaking his head, Subaru donned his large, noise-canceling headphones, ready for another night of World of Warcraft. He knew, without even thinking about it, that Akane's image of the evening would be persistent even as he tried to drown her out with the voices of his online competitors.

Subaru hadn't meant to be in the stairwell a few nights later, when Akane was coming home with some guy who lived only temporarily in their apartment complex. He hadn't meant to happen upon them swallowing each other's mouths, his hand sneaking up her shirt as hers dug into his finally combed hair. He hadn't meant to stare as she let him suck on the base of her neck, or listen to her moan as the guy started rubbing her lower back. He hadn't meant any of it, and yet it all happened.

And that night, he hadn't meant to dream of what it would be like to be that guy, pressed up against the wall as Akane Narita battled tongues with him, letting him kiss her neck and reach a hand up her shirt. He hadn't meant to imagine her coming to his doorway in mussed clothing, asking if she could stay the night only to pull him into a hungry kiss.

He hadn't meant any of the images to come, but come they did, and the next time he saw Akane in the stairwell he could only blush, say a brief hello, and then pass her up the stairs.


	21. Tsumasaki

Title: Tsumasaki

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #12 - in a good mood

Disclaimer: I don't _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

Author's Note: This fic was inspired by Oreskaband's performance at Anime Expo, and their song Tsumasaki, ending to Bleach.

He has never seen her like this before. He knows he convinced her to come under false pretenses--but to see her open up so much, sway her body back and forth as her hair falls about her shoulders--it's all new sights to Subaru, and he enjoys them immensely.

As they walk through the convention hall, Subaru feels he made a drastic mistake in bringing her. The people dressed in fantastic costumes carrying large swords were obviously going to scare her--and he curses himself for not thinking of that earlier. They walk underneath beating sun and Akane looks about them in wonder, sometimes with a raised eyebrow as she sees another man in a schoolgirl outfit. Subaru blushes at every questioning look her receives, but continues to lead her towards the arena. At least in the darkness he won't be able to see her staring at him as if he's grown a second head. Or perhaps a third. At least under the mask of thousands of screaming otaku she won't be able to ask him what they're doing there.

It's amazing to see Akane standing, bopping her head to the music being played live on the stage in front of them. He was too late for premium seats, so they sit in the balcony quite far from the stage, but she doesn't seem to care. The two projection screens give them a good enough view of the band members' faces and Akane doesn't keep her eyes open long enough to care. Her lids slide closed as she gets completely involved in the music, and Subaru watches, amazed. The six high school girls from Osaka are dancing around the stage and encouraging the crowd to get up out of their seats to do so as well. They need not convince most likely the only non-otaku in the crowd--she's been dancing since their first chord.

And at the end of the night, when he turns on the radio only to hear one of the band's songs blasting through his decrepit car speakers, she squeals and clutches onto his arm. "We saw them! Live!" And he can't believe this is the same girl that called him a dweeb for watching anime at all hours of the night. Of course, she didn't really get into the anime part of the day, but when it came to the music--their rhythms seemed to match.

Subaru has to clench his hands on the steering wheel in order to keep from driving them into a sign post when she leans over and kisses him on the cheek. "Thanks for sharing this with me. I had way more fun than I thought I would." He glanced over at her as she tapped her fingers to the finishing beats of one of Oreskaband's songs, laughing to himself. She was enjoying something he enjoyed, and it made him glow. It filled him with a brightness he hadn't felt in a long time.

It helped that the song she was singing was also the eleventh opening to Bleach. An anime. But he wasn't about to tell her that.


	22. Just A Hint

Title: **Just A Hint**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #28 – Wada Calcium CD3

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

Subaru was on his computer an average of eight hours a day, not counting the occasional computer lab excursion during school. He was a video game geek at heart, but with the internet expanding as fast as it did—and with a sister who happened to have about _eight_ favorite TV shows—Subaru couldn't keep himself from getting online as often as possible.

Which, to say the least, angered his parents, friends, and new girlfriend.

His parents wanted him to go outside, hang out with his friends—anything to get his noise-canceling headphones off for a moment or two. His friends wanted generally the same thing—they really wanted to hang out, possibly do an informal game tournament among friends, and maybe catch that new Transformers movie or something.

And his girlfriend _really_ wanted him to stop checking his email when she was over.

She wanted to go out on dates without him checking his cell phone—which, thanks to his slightly higher grades in school, had working internet access—every five seconds.

It didn't help that his room had no windows. Akane had come to thinking of her boyfriend as a vampire minus the hot. He wasn't really cute when sickly pale due to lack of sun exposure. Nor when he was ignoring her completely when she was standing at his doorway.

She figured out, about two weeks into dating the spiky-haired otaku, a way to give him a hint. She giggled at her own cleverness as she place the little medicine bottles in a pyramid in front of Subaru's computer monitor. He was sleeping just feet from her, but she could tell from his pleased expression that he was completely out, and probably would be for the next few hours. She snuck out as quietly as she had come in, high-fiving Asahi on her way out of the apartment.

When Subaru woke up his room was silent. That enough woke him up more completely—the familiar whirring of his computer fans was not filling his ears. He looked over at his desk, a mess of cheat codes and ramune, only to not see his monitor. Instead, a pyramid-shaped pile of calcium pill bottles stared back at him. He rubbed his eyes, as if trying to wake up from this strange dream. He tugged his lanky body up from his bed, crossing quickly to his desk. He grabbed a bottle in his hand and looked at the label, blinking a few times to see it clearly.

"For lack of sun—" He read aloud, and then stopped, the gears in his brain finally clicking to life. He smiled, a small smile, placing the bottle back onto the top of the pyramid that hid his monitor. Next to the pile was a bottle of sunscreen, and a little note in Akane's familiar handwriting: "Just in case."

He sighed, running a hand through his messy spikes, before walking out of his bedroom and into the living room of his family's apartment.

And there was Akane, sprawled out on the couch, a pillow in her arms and a bowl of popcorn at her side. She looked up as he walked in and smirked. "Get the hint?"

He blushed a little, crossing to her and wrestling a spot on the couch she had otherwise claimed. "Yeah. Thanks." He leaned over to grab some popcorn, and as he did Akane leaned up and planted a kiss on his cheek. He blushed a deeper crimson and sat up straight. "I think I'll get some breakfast." He got up quickly and rushed into the kitchen, hiding his own embarrassment.

Subaru heard Akane giggling into the pillow.


	23. I Didn't Get You Anything

Title: **I Didn't Get You Anything**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #17 – kHz (Kilohertz)

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

Akane had no clue what to get a dweeb for his seventeenth birthday. Did you get him more comic books? Some random anime? She stood next to the bank of prize machines (including that one with the bears—a couple was eagerly dumping yen into it), looking around. She didn't know what to do. She had never had a boyfriend long enough for birthdays. This was a whole new experience, and she wasn't sure she liked it.

--

She dumped the bag in front of him that evening after his parents and sister had "stepped out for a moment." He had blushed furiously at the ridiculous cake his mother had made, and the dorky presents from his parents and his sister. Seventeen was a milestone, surely, but not as important as sixteen or eighteen.

He stared at the bag in front of him. It wasn't a present bag, it was a plastic bag, and there was something dark and rectangular inside. It looked… well, broken. He peered into the bag, and there lay an old, old, possibly military-edition radio, complete with a mic laying on top of it. It still had kHz dials. He raised an eyebrow, confused.

"It's a radio." Akane stated simply, sitting next to him with her feet on the base of his chair.

"I can see that," he said quickly, turning to her, "but why—"

"Don't geeks play with electronics and stuff? You could take it apart or something."

Subaru ran a hand through his hair, blushing again. Is that really what she thought? Maybe some of his friends liked taking apart stuff… But he really wasn't one of them. He couldn't figure out how to put his alarm clock back together after he'd dropped it.

"Well… Thanks, then." He said instead of what he was really thinking. Why in the world would she think he liked to tinker? She had never _seen_ him doing that, had she?

Akane was watching him carefully, her arms crossed. "If you don't like it, I can take it back."

Subaru was quick to defend his earlier statement. "N-no! I like it! Thank you, Akane." He leaned forward out of his own embarassment and kissed her on the lips. Her eyes widened when he leaned back, looking through the radio and it's accompanying parts. "I'm sure one of my friends can show me how to get this working again," he was mumbling to himself, taking out the mic and fiddling with it.

She was smiling as she watched him, knowing she'd made a mistake—but glad she had. Subaru cared enough not to hurt her feelings, even on his birthday.


	24. Virtual Reality

Title: **Virtual Reality**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #29 – the sound of waves

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

Subaru had recently gotten into the world of virtual reality gaming. For his last birthday his parents had given him one of the VR headsets for an online game that had caught his interest. He liked to be absorbed in the VR world. He could listen to the cheesy background music and watch players who lived over 3,000 miles away come up to him in their recently created avatars.

But his favorite part of the VR world was the places he could go to without leaving his room. In this particular fantasy game, he could climb mountains and swim rivers without breaking a sweat. He fought dragons in the dark dungeons of a haunted castle, and saved damsel CPUs. He could go into a town with old stone streets and shop in a bazaar full of other online gamers like himself. Sure, the world was mostly a bunch of two-dimensional backdrops, but it was a world he could enter effortlessly.

Akane did not enjoy the experience of virtual reality. She found it boring, at most. She did not understand how you moved with just the tweak of your hand on a joystick, or how you talked to other players just by whispering words into your mic. She disliked the 2-D backdrops and the strange elves and other fanciful creatures that either attempted to trade with you or started a fight. This VR world was not nearly as interesting as her world.

"What's with this stupid music?" She asked him one day after he plopped his headset on her head when she tried to distract him from battling an ogre. "It's so repetitive. Why don't they have real-world music? Where are the birds? The waves?"

Subaru laughed, not understanding Akane's frustration with his world. "This isn't real. There are no birds."

Akane pointed to a creature only she could see. "Right there! It's a bird, but you can't even hear it! What's the point of a world with only cheesy elevator music? Not even someone's footsteps! Sheesh." She took off the headset with one swift motion and shoved it back into his hands. "I prefer the real world, Subie-kun. With real sounds. I'll see you later." She got off his computer chair and pranced out of his room, her little skirt flouncing with her every step.

She took him to the beach for their eight-month anniversary. She held his hand on the entire train ride; even nuzzled his neck once or twice to lay a kiss on a spot she knew was especially sensitive. When they finally reached the coast, she dragged him down to the sand, kicking off her strappy heels as she went.

"See this?" Akane cried as she danced around the waves that coiled along the shore. "This is the world I was talking about!"

Subaru did see. He heard the seagulls crying overhead and the waves that took away Akane's footprints. He felt the cool spray and the light breeze. He heard the last departing train and did not bother to wonder how they would get home.

"It's the sound of waves," Akane said when she reached him, her legs already soaked and stuck with sand. "That's what was missing."


	25. Blame the Fence

Title: **Blame the Fence**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #25 – fence

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

Akane blamed the fence. She blamed the people who put the fence up around the tennis training facilities. If it wasn't for the fence, she and her friends would be sitting on the hill overlooking the training facilities, watching lithe young tennis players in short shorts hit a ball back in forth. If it weren't for the fence, she wouldn't be in the Yagi's apartment, sitting across from the eldest Yagi sibling.

Subaru fiddled with his hands as if unable to figure out what to do with them. She barely even looked up at him, as she picked at her nails.

"A-Asahi will be here soon, N-N-Narita--"

"As you told me when I came in, Yagi-kun. I'll wait." Akane commented swiftly, still not looking up. She adjusted her school uniform, tweaking her skirt (hemmed a little shorter than it should have been) and flicking her hair over her shoulder. She felt Subaru's eyes on her, studying her every motion, and it made her really uncomfortable.

Guys stared at her all the time--she knew it, they knew it, it was a game she got to play with boys of all ages. But her best friend's brother? Not so much. Not the dweeb who she only saw when he came out of his room for another bowl of popcorn, headphones slung around his neck. His idea of a hot girl was always two-dimensional and blonde, blonde, blonde. Akane instinctively rolled her eyes at the thought.

Subaru caught that motion as well. "Wh-what?"

Running a finger over her lips to see if her lipstick was as long lasting as the ad implied, she didn't even look as she answered. "Nothing, Yagi-kun. Nothing at all." Sighing, she relaxed into the sofa, crossing and uncrossing her legs. Subaru was still staring. "Don't you have something to do? You don't have to keep me company."

"Oh! Oh. N-no. I can wait. At least 'til Asahi gets here." The words flew out of Subaru's mouth and surprised Akane. She hadn't known he could get out a whole sentence without stuttering, let alone one that made him seem... almost...nice.

Shaking her head to rid her brain of any such thoughts, Akane put up a hand and waved the older boy away. "It's fine, Yagi-kun--"

"Subaru."

She eyed him carefully beneath styled lashes. "Subaru." The name curled over her tongue comfortably. "Right. Anyway, it's fine. I've been here enough times, I can keep myself occupied." _Like I was going to keep myself occupied with the entire tennis team._

"I guess... Maybe you want something to drink?" Subaru got up from his position in the chair across from her, tugging down his t-shirt and running his hand through his messy 'do. "A snack?"

Akane looked the lanky boy up and down. She felt him blush under her gaze, and he fiddled with the hem of his t-shirt as if she could see right through it. _As if he's anything to be undressed_. "A soda would be fine, Ya--Subaru. Diet, if you have it."

He nodded vigorously, already heading toward the kitchen. "Sure! Sure. Of course."

_Hmm_... Akane thought as he went, watching his lounging pants curve to his legs and surprisingly fit bottom. She smirked at the thought that managed to pass through her brain. _Subaru in short shorts..._

When he came back in the room he had two drinks in his hand—a soda and a bottle of water. He set the soda down on the coffee table in front of her and unscrewed the water bottle as he sat down across from her once more. Shaken out of her thoughts of the eldest Yagi sibling in rather flattering tennis shorts, Akane reached for her soda only to knock it on the carpeted floor.

"Oh! I'm so, so sorry." She got down off her seat immediately, panicking at not having anything to dry the mess with. Subaru said nothing, only disappeared into the kitchen only to reappear moments later with a roll of paper towels.

"It's fine. I do it all the time." He said, getting down on his hands and knees next to her. "Asahi more than me." He added, smiling at her as he padded paper towels into the carpet, trying to soak up the sticky mess.

"But it's soda…"

"Mom'll clean up the rest with the steamer I'm sure. I'll tell her I did it." He winked, and Akane realized how close they had gotten as they both tried to assess the damage. Not one to be cautious, and extremely grateful that he would take the fall for her, she leaned over and kissed him lightly on the cheek.

"Thanks, Subaru-kun. That's really sweet of you." She got up with him, handing him back the roll of paper towels. He was bright red. "By the way," she added, as she heard a key being put into the front door of the apartment, "have you ever thought of taking up tennis?"


	26. To Never Wake Up

Title: **To Never Wake Up, Never Say Goodbye**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #3 – jolt

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

It took times for things to sink in for Subaru. After that first kiss it took him weeks to realize he had a girlfriend. It took months for it to hit him that they were in the same school, years for him to comprehend how much he cared about her.

And it took him until graduation to figure out he was a senior.

Hatsumi was all smiles outside of the apartment complex, clad in a dress she had not show Ryoki-who had graduated the week before-yet. Her parents and little brother were standing off to the side, her mother's eyes were wet with tears and her father's hands clenched around a disposable camera. When Subaru stepped outside Hatsumi twirled toward him, then flung her arms around him.

"We're graduating, Yagi-kun! Isn't that exciting?" She chriped, as a car rolled up to the walk. Hatsumi released her grasp on Subaru's shoulders and stood anxiously as the driver opened the back door. Out stepped Ryoki, suave as always in a suit and tie. He took barely one look at Hatsumi before he had her in his arms, seconds before he gave her a parent-friendly kiss.

And then she was there.

Akane had her arms around his waist as she pressed herself flush up against Subaru. She had grown taller, but so had he. He felt her hair against the nape of his neck, felt her nose against his collar. He felt her take one, deep breath before she appeared in front of him.

It took him only moments to know he loved her. It hit him faster than anything else ever had. He grabbed her and held her tight, heard the camera click but did not dare let go or open his eyes, just in case he opened them to find out he was dreaming, and he was still the geek, and she was still the princess, and they were living in separate worlds.


	27. Damn the Plumbing Part One

Title: **Damn the Plumbing (Part 1 of 2)**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #5 – "ano sa…"

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

The pipes on one of the lower floors burst during a heavy rainstorm one summer, just before Akane's eighth grade year. She was in her family's apartment, about three floors up, when it had happened. She had heard the clang, the rush of water—but she had never imagined what could possibly happen to her if the plumbing downstairs had decided to freak out.

Since the Tachibana residence was on the top floor the complex, it was decided the plumber would work his way down the complex to make sure everyone else's plumbing was all right after the storm.

Which meant, sadly, that the Yagi family was going to have to wait for their plumbing (as they were one of the families on the floor with puddles for pipes) to be fixed.

So the Yagi family split up for the time being. Asahi went to a friend's house closer to their school, although Akane offered her their room. Mr. Yagi was on a business trip and would not be back for a few days. And Mrs. Yagi took a much-needed vacation to visit her parents. That left Subaru—who felt very uncomfortable imposing on his best friend Ryoki's apartment. Especially when his other best friend, Hatsumi, was there almost as much as Ryoki was. But Hatsumi had had the bright idea to let Subaru stay with them-in the living room, surely, because Hikaru still slept in their parents' room and Akane and Hatsumi shared.

Akane was not so inclined to agree with the arrangement. First, Subaru was a dweeb, and if Asahi had found somewhere else to sleep, why couldn't he? Second, he was a _boy_. She wasn't allowed to have boys over, ever, so why could Hatsumi's geeky friend stay? And finally, what if she wanted a snack in the middle of the night?

"You never get up in the middle of the night, Akane. Besides, Subaru wouldn't mind, right, Subaru?" Hatsumi turned to Subaru, who sat on a railing outside of the apartment complex, swinging his legs back and forth. He looked up when he heard his name, feeling rather sheepish. He nodded, hoping that he was giving the right answer. "See, Akane? It will be fine. Besides, you've slept at the Yagi's apartment a hundred times. This'll just be like another sleepover."

Akane glared at her sister, flicking her bangs out of her eyes. She was dressed for a date-she was on her way out when her sister had caught her to tell her the brilliant idea-and she was uncomfortable. Her skirt was barely long enough to cover her legs, her top exposed her midriff, and there were creepy old ladies gossiping not two feet from them.

"Fine, Hatsumi, fine. Let him stay. But I have to go, and he _better_ not go in our room!" Akane called over her shoulder, directing a narrow look in Subaru's direction. He put his hands up in his own defense, which resulted in his losing balance and falling backwards off the railing. Akane didn't bother laughing. She was late enough as it was.

Before she even reached the next corner she felt a hand on her shoulder, and she twirled around, ready to push off whichever letch was trying to feel her up. But the young man behind her wasn't a letch-at least, she didn't think he was, and she had known him a long time. Subaru was breathing hard from the sprint.

"Um… Hey… You know… You didn't have to s-say I could stay. A-and I'll stay out of your way, I promise!" He said in a hurry, tripping over his words. Akane stared at him, twirling one of her styled tresses. "I j-just wanted to say thank you!"

Snorting, Akane twirled around to wait for the light to change. "Yeah, whatever, Yagi-kun. See you later." She didn't bother to wait for a response as she ran across the street. She almost ran into her date on his way to pick her up, and she gave him a quick kiss to silence and question he might have as to why she wasn't at her apartment.

Linking her arm in his, Akane took one look back behind her. She couldn't see the older Yagi sibling, but somehow she knew he was still there, watching. It made the hair on her neck stand on end. She had never been thanked so profusely before—and it made her uncomfortable. She decided to forget about it as soon as possible, and flung her mind fully into her date.


	28. Damn the Plumbing Part Two

Title: **Damn the Plumbing (Part 2 of 2)**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #13 – excessive chain

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

Author's Note: I had waaaay too much fun with this one, you guys. Listened to a lot of happy music, and just went nuts. I thought the last one wasn't Subaru/Akane enough, so I wanted to really whap you guys with some lovely romance.

Akane had discovered several problems with having a teenage male in the apartment. She could not believe she had ever wanted one there in the first place. She also wondered how she had forgotten Shinogu's own wasted teenage years. Perhaps she had just blocked the memories. Or maybe these kinds of embarrassing situations never happened when it came to your brother.

No, it seemed to only happen around the brother of your best friend, who was too much for a dork to do anything but blush and stare at you as if he has never seen a scantily clad girl before. Which, given the aforementioned conclusion of embarrassing things happening around your own brother, he probably hasn't.

"Um, Yagi-kun? What are you doing up?" Akane asked, her glass of milk halfway to her mouth. With her free hand she tugged at her lacy top, trying to cover her midriff—something that, in the presence of other males, she had never done before. She stared at the Yagi sibling, who looked like he had yet to fall asleep, trying to make all her movements seem nonchalant. She was failing, and he was still staring at her bare skin.

"What? Oh. Oh! S-sorry, Narita-chan… I-I was hungry…" His eyes finally drifted up a little further, away from her abdomen. Akane wanted to smack him when they rested just below her shoulder for a moment, before he was looking at her face and blushing furiously. "I'll just get out of your way." He whispered quickly, before disappearing into the darkened living room. Akane was still holding the glass of milk as if she was going to drink it, although any thoughts of that had long since escaped her.

Had Asahi's brother just _checked her out?_

No. She had to be imagining it. Subaru Yagi was as asexual as any male could be. His idea of an ideal female was two-dimensional and probably looked like a gundam.

Or she would have thought she had been imagining it, had it not been for the second instance.

Akane had learned to not get midnight snacks while Subaru was in the house, but somehow she had not figure out the whole lock-the-bathroom-door scenario. So while she was singing Arashi songs into her brush, anyone could just barge in to use the toilet. Including Subaru, who had thought Akane had been in some sort of pain.

"N-narita-san?" He interrupted her bathroom performance. Akane turned to him, mouth open, toothbrush-cum-microphone at the ready. There was toothpaste dribbling from her lip.

"Yagi-kun!" She spoke, toothpaste getting everywhere. She squeaked and spit out her mouthful, running the water to rinse her brush and her face. When she looked up again, Subaru was watching her intently, and Akane could not figure out why. "What is it?"

Suddenly the older boy was back to being shy and awkward. "O-oh! Nothing. I just… You have some—" He stepped forward and reached out a hand. Akane had to contain the shudder when she felt his fingers on her neck. When he brought his hand away, a little bit of her wayward toothpaste was on his fingertips. "Toothpaste. You missed it." He spoke easily, despite his blush, before he turned on his heel and forged out of the bathroom.

Akane looked at herself in the mirror, to see if she had missed any more toothpaste, only to realize what had captured Subaru's attention—it was not the toothpaste. It was the hickey, just beside her collarbone. She sighed, running a hand through her messy morning hair. _What a dork_.

The instances of embarrassed interruption continued to occur throughout the week Subaru was staying with the Narita family. What did not make sense to Akane, however, was that they continued to happen to her, and no one else. If Hatsumi was not such a monk, then maybe Subaru would have walked in on _her _making out with her boyfriend, rather than Akane. If Hatsumi had more friends, maybe Subaru would accidentally pick up the phone during one of _her_ private conversations, instead of Akane's.

Finally, only a few hours before Subaru would be returning to his own apartment (Mrs. Narita had claimed that he could not leave without eating dinner with them first), Akane stomped into the apartment, plopping herself down on the couch in a huff. Subaru, who had been sitting on the floor with his obnoxiously large headphones on, fell over.

"N-narita-san!" He exclaimed, righting himself and slipping his headphones around his neck. "Uh, tadaima?" He looked at her frustrated expression, before pulling himself up to sit on the couch-his bed for the past seven days-next to her. "Is everything okay?"

"No, it's not okay!" She shouted, fuming. Akane was dressed for a date-her make-up was untouched, her top perfectly set, her skirt a tad too short for Subaru's comfort. He tried not to look below her chin, for his own self-preservation. "My date said I smelled like another guy! What the hell is that? Smelled like another guy?" Akane whipped her head around to look at Subaru, who reeled back in surprise, practically tumbling to the floor again. "Do I smell like another guy to you? Do I?"

Subaru put his hands up in his own defense. "Y-you smell like p-perfume, like you always do." He said quickly, getting up. "I'm sorry about your date, Narita-san. Really."

Akane was pouting, and it was obvious to both of them. She looked up at the older boy, his spikes a mess from his near tumbles and falls, and tried to word the next question as simply as possible.

"I don't use perfume, Yagi-kun. What made you think I did?"

Mouth hanging open, he tried to sit down again. He only managed to put a knee on the couch cushion. "I-I don't know. You always smell nice."

Trying to look him in the eye, Akane got onto her knees to face him. They were almost nose-to-nose. "Not like another guy?"

Subaru's eyes widened. "Wh-what? No!"

"Just nice?"

He nodded his head, and they accidentally bumped noses. He jerked his head backward to give them more space, only to break his already precarious position. He fell, off the sofa's arm, and only managed to catch his hands so that his head did not crack on the floor. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath.

When he opened them, Akane was peering over him, parts of her body he had never even dreamed of pressed flush up against him.

"Are you okay?"

The words barely registered with him. She was too close, and he was taking up his senses in a way he never thought possible. He could not answer, even if he had wanted to. And at that point, he did not want to. He wanted to take her in, in her unmussed date clothes, the way her stupid date should have.

Her gaze pierced his own and they stayed like that for a few seconds. He was perched in a way that bent his back in an awkward direction, but he did not dare move. He was afraid if he moved, this beautiful girl who had thought of him as a dweeb ever since they had met (how long ago that seemed now), would realize exactly what she was doing, and instantly regret it.

She read the look in his eyes before he even knew he was looking at her in that way—the way guys looked at her when she walked down the street. And she grinned, softly, trying not to scare him. She slid her hand to the side of their bodies to grab his and tug him up. He came, as if on automatic. She tugged at him again, bringing him closer, and brought her lips to his. The kiss lasted longer than Akane had expected it would, even with his long pause before reacting. It seemed she had rendered every part of him useless but his lips, but Akane did not mind—she had that affect on guys.

When they broke apart they were breathing hard, and Subaru was looking down at his knees, still pressed into the sofa cushion. Akane tried to place a hand on his shoulder, lean in for another kiss, but he would not let her. Finally when he raised his gaze, she saw something she had not expected—guilt.

"I answered your phone."

"What?"

"Your cell phone. I answered it. You left it in the kitchen this morning."

This was not making any sense. "So what?"

Subaru ran a hand through his spikes. His skin was stained a pleasant red that made Akane's face heat up as well. "I think it was your date."

It dawned on her too late. Subaru was up and out of there, into the bathroom. The gears in her brain worked after he shut the door, and she let out a laugh that she felt all the way to her fingertips and toes.

"He thinks he _ruined_ my _date_!"


	29. An Alternative

Title: **An Alternative**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #8 - our own world

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

School. The unavoidable worst thing on the entire planet, for one reason, and one reason only.

Ex-boyfriends.

And Akane had plenty of them. As she walked through the halls on her first day of high school, she suddenly realized just how many guys she had dated. Everywhere she turned another guy was giving her that awkward look-the "I-know-you-but-don't-want-to" look. Until she finally ducked into a clubroom after school, she couldn't get away from them.

The room she entered was lined with computers, a square table surrounded by mismatched chairs in the middle. A hand-written sign on what looked like used computer paper was hanging on the wall by the window. "Computer Club."

"Great..." Akane sighed, plopping down on one of the table's chairs. The torn cushion practically sunk beneath her, and the chair let out a rather unappealing squeak. Just was the sound rang out in the small room, the door slid open and in walked what looked like a television with legs and spiky black hair. Or it did, until Akane recognized the 'do.

"Yagi-kun?"

The senior peeked around the flat screen monitor he was carrying, before stumbling inside the room and setting the monitor on the table. He looked over at the underclassman-oh yeah; Hatsumi's little sister-and ran a hand through his hair. His slightly-too-small uniform made the motion a little difficult.

"Narita-chan...What are you doing here? At the school? I think Hatsumi's in class--"

"I'm a freshman, Yagi-kun. Today was my first day." She looked at the older boy tiredly, adjusting her skirt-hemmed just a bit too short-and tucked her legs underneath the table. As she had learned to do to many other guys before, she looked at him from beneath her eyelashes--but Subaru was no longer looking at her. He was looking out the window as his hands kept busy untangling the cords of his monitor.

"Oh, I didn't know... I guess I forget, sometimes, what with Asahi--"

"Going to another school? Yeah... It's been a while since I've seen her." Akane placed one hand lightly on top of ht other, all business. Subaru looked over at her, his hands holding two ends of the same cord. "How is she?"

"Fine," he answered quickly. The door to the clubroom slid open again, and one of the other computer club members stepped in. One of the best ideas she had ever had, hiding in this room. Not a single one of her ex-boyfriends would have been caught dead in the Computer Club.

"Yagi-senpai, what should we do with the extra keyboards?" The boy, older than Akane but still Subaru's junior, was carrying a few decrepit keyboards in his arms. He looked at Akane strangely, as if he had never seen a girl before. Or perhaps he had just never seen a girl in this particular room before. "U-uh, hello?"

Subaru was across the room in seconds, taking the keyboards from his kohai's arms, when the boy noticed Akane. Subaru set the keyboards down in front of the monitor, unsure of what to do. How could he explain the presence of an appealing Year One_ girl _in the Computer Club room?

Luckily, he didn't have to. Akane stood up from her chair, flattening the pleats on her skirt and gave a quick greeting to the club member before departing. She didn't even give him her name. She didn't want anyone to know she had been there.

--

Subaru Yagi was Hatsumi's oldest friend, that much Akane knew. They lived barely floors apart, but after Asahi transferred to another school (and moved out of the apartment with her mother), Akane did not see the older Yagi sibling around as much. She knew Asahi's reasons for leaving--being around Shinogu hurt too much, and her mother was ready to let her daughter spend some time away to allow her to repair. From Akane's few sleepovers at the Yagi's apartment, she also knew Subaru was an anime geek--but he had given up being part of the Anime Club when his sister left, in favor of learning "usable" skills--so he joined the Computer Club. He wasn't a good student, by any stretch of the imagination--he was one of the few Computer Club members who spent time at the arcade rather than studying on weeknights. After that, Akane knew nothing--Asahi had stopped writing her e-mails, and Subaru didn't hang around the Narita's apartment anymore.

After all this, Akane was rather surprised to actually see Subaru in the halls of the apartment complex. For over a year, it was as if he and his father didn't even live there. She never saw them leave in the morning, never saw them return at night. But Mr. Yagi was still going to work, and after the Computer Club room meet, Akane knew Subaru was going to school.

Subaru looked at her out of the corner of his eye when they almost collided on their way into the apartment complex. He had his bag over his shoulder, and dodged her wayward steps just barely by sliding in the door. Akane watched him sidle passed the elevator in favor of the stairs. Sighing, Akane pressed the "up" button on the elevator and didn't give him a second glance.

--

The next day, at school, Akane needed a place to hide. Lunch had become awkward for her--her friends were all at different schools, some better, some worse, and she didn't know whom to sit with. In her middle school, when things like this happened, she just flirted with a guy so he would buy her lunch. High school was different. She was a freshman, the lowest on the food chain--and way too many guys already knew her tricks. Akane stalked through the halls, bypassing her classroom in favor of the clubroom halls. She stared at the familiar door at the end of the hall, before raising a hand and sliding it open a little. There seemed to be no one inside. Gripping her lunch tighter, Akane tiptoed into the Computer Club room.

Apparently she hadn't looked hard enough. At one of the computers, his head resting on the keyboard, was the sleeping form of Subaru Yagi. His lunch was beside him, half-eaten. Akane watched him sleep for a few seconds, before settling down at the table to eat her own meal. She guessed that had it been any other club member, Akane would have found somewhere else to eat. But Subaru? The dense, dorky friend of her older sister? She doubted he would even wake up when the bell rang for afternoon classes.

--

Akane continued to use the clubroom as her lunchroom for the rest of the week. She was surprised to find that Subaru seemed to fall asleep there at the same time everyday. She packed up all her things a few minutes before the bell rang and slipped out of the room so he never knew she was there. To her friends at other schools, she confessed she had been eating lunch with a senior boy everyday. To her sister, she said she had been eating in the cafeteria with everyone else. "How could you have not seen me?"

She thought her escapades had gone unnoticed, until the next Monday she found a place setting on the table when she came into the room for lunch. Her eyes widened as she came forward. It was just a rudimentary thing-napkins, a plate, chopsticks-but obviously someone knew she came there. She looked around the room. No one was in sight. _Where is Yagi-kun?_

The door behind her slid open and Akane jumped, letting out a squeal. She whipped her head around, almost hitting Subaru as he came into the room. He smiled sheepishly, walking over to his usual napping spot and sitting down. "Sorry, Narita-chan. I didn't mean to scare you. You've been leaving a little bit of a mess after you leave...I didn't want you to get anything on the computers." Subaru shrugged his shoulders, taking out his own lunch and facing the wall to eat. Akane watched him, before carefully creeping over towards the place setting and sitting down. She unwrapped her lunchbox-still in the dorky fabric her mother wrapped it in every morning-and ate in silence, as always. She was uncomfortable having a conscious lunch mate.

When Akane was finished, she packed things up as usual, and got ready to leave. Subaru had spent most of the period watching anime music videos on the Internet--it seemed, even as a Computer Club member, he couldn't give up his true passion. He turned as she got ready to leave, and stood up abruptly. There was still a video playing on the screen.

"N-narita-chan... I hope you're still g-going to come? I-I mean here, t-tomorrow?" He shoved his hands in his pockets, staring at his worn hand-me-down shoes. Akane watched his face turn red, and she smiled softly. Yes, a very good idea to hide here.

"Of course, Yagi-kun. You weren't gonna kick me out, were you?"

"N-no! Of course not!"

Akane stepped closer to the older boy, before placing a kiss on his cheek (she didn't even have to stand on her toes). "Thank you, Yagi-kun. For all this." Then she left.

Subaru stood there long after she had gone, long after the bell had rang and he was very late for class. He brought his hand up to his cheek, and slid back down into his seat. "Y-you're welcome."


	30. The Caliber of Kisses

Title: **The Caliber of Kisses**

Author: shimasama

Pairing: Akane Narita and Subaru Yagi

Fandom: _Hot Gimmick_

Theme: #30 – kiss

Disclaimer: I do not own _Hot Gimmick_. It belongs to Viz and Miki Aihara.

Author's Note to Readers: Thank you so much for being with me through this rather extended travail of 30 kisses drabbles. I would list names, but it's late, and I really should be going to sleep.

But here's a question for my readers: If I were to make any one of these drabbles into a full-blown fic (with chapters and everything), which one would you like to read? Or is there one you want me to expand upon?

This is the last entry for Unhindered Kisses.

And so we go.

--

Akane's kisses make Subaru speechless. Only for a few seconds any words he may have said stick in his throat, jumble in his brain the point where nothing makes sense.

When they kissed for the first time, her kiss tasted like chocolate. Their second and third kisses tasted the same (they happened not too long after the first). Yet he could not put that taste into words immediately. He could not have told anyone, those few seconds after their kisses, what Akane tasted like, because he could not put anything into words.

That was the power of Akane's kiss.

--

Subaru left Akane with butterflies in her stomach.

He usually never initiated a kiss, but when he did Akane knew he meant it with his whole heart. His kisses told her that he loved her more than anything that he thought of her even when he was watching anime or playing video games.

Their first kiss tasted like Subaru's _lips_. It was a feeling Akane was not used to, no matter how many boys she had kissed before. Subaru was an older guy, and she had dated plenty of older guys, but none of them had had such a distinct… _taste_ before. So when her friends asked her what kissing Subaru Yagi was like, whether he was as awkward and geeky as he seemed, Akane could not answer. All she could do was attempt to describe that taste, which she only felt sometimes, which she could not imagine without Subaru's lips pressed against hers.

That taste left her breathless.

--

Subaru was awkwardly proportioned, and he knew it. When Akane slid her fingers up his shirt for the first time, as they battled tongues on his bed, he freaked out and broke the contact. He had no particularly gratifying features—no muscular abdomen, no pecks, no strong arms. So when he felt the contact of her cool fingers on his stomach, he did not know what to do.

Akane had looked at him, startled, her hair a mess and her lips bruised. He stared at her, aching with a need he was not used to (never acted on, at least, when a girl was involved), and then asked her quietly if they could stop. He knew how much of a geek she must have thought he was, stopping a make-out session with one of the most beautiful girls he had ever seen, but he was scared.

Her touch made him scared.

--

Akane was not a virgin (not even close) when she kissed Subaru for the first time. But when they made out on his bed for the first time, she felt like she could have been. She could have fumbled over his clothes, hoped he liked her body, been the way she had been the first time she had sex—because he was and older _boy_, because she was a younger _girl_. But she lost the need to fumble when he brought her down with him, her body pressed flush to his. So it felt natural to slip her fingers beneath his Gundam t-shirt, to feel his soft skin beneath—

But apparently it was not natural to him, and he jumped away from her without warning. He was flushed, hot, and he obviously had not noticed that the action had tugged up his shirt enough for his pale skin to be exposed. She looked at him, breathless, wanting.

His kiss made her want him.

--

When they made love for the first time he was going to a local university and she was in her last year of high school. She had never gone as long as she had without sex, and he had never told anyone how long he remained basically a virgin (what she did not know, and continued to not know, is that he had had sex once before, a fumbling, embarrassing experience he hoped to never repeat). So when they were alone in the Narita apartment and their clothes began to come off piece by piece, both Akane and Subaru felt more natural then than ever before.

Because her kisses made him scared.

And his kisses gave her butterflies.


End file.
